Human leftovers, detritus are going to the dogs

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THE growing environmental awareness of Australians and their
taste for multicultural cuisine have created some unexpected but
deadly problems for the nation's pets.

While dogs continue to suffer serious gastrointestinal problems
after eating torn tennis balls, bottle tops and even mango pips,
vets are now also seeing dogs that have fallen seriously ill after
swallowing satay sticks and even tampons.

Richard Malik, a specialist at Sydney University's Post-Graduate
Foundation for Veterinary Science, said such problems were not
observed a few years ago.

"There is a new generation of foreign bodies" that pets swallow,
he said. "Everybody used to flush tampons down the toilet." To
protect the environment they were now placed in bathroom sanitary
bags, destined for the garbage bin.

However, said Dr Malik, tampons were very attractive to dogs.
"They raid the bags. Dogs love blood."

The tampons lodged in the pet's stomach, while the strings
continued through the intestines. "The string causes the intestine
to bunch up like a concertina, and eventually cuts through the gut
wall, resulting in peritonitis and eventually death."

He knew of at least five cases in recent years, but suspected
many more went unnoticed because there was no formal reporting
system for veterinary matters. "Indeed, dogs may die without
reaching a vet," he said.

Dr Malik detailed the tampon threat in the foundation's
newsletter Control & Therapy.

Vets examining pets that were vomiting or suffering abdominal
pain "need to be on the lookout for 'new' foreign bodies, not well
described in older veterinary textbooks," he wrote. "Although this
topic may initially appear unseemly, owners need to be made aware
of the new danger common to many households."

One stick passed through a dog's liver and lung, lodging against
its heart. "He was going into heart failure," he said, adding that
only major surgery saved its life.

The vets said other objects being swallowed by dogs included
"bite-sized" corn cobs served with take-away meals, netting around
roasts and elastic hair scrunchies.

Dr Malik said plastic clips used to reseal bread bags were
another threat to cats. "If you see your cat playing with one don't
encourage it. Put it in the bin." He urged bread makers to switch
to cardboard clips or twist ties.